Source: Sharecast
Equipment rental firm Ashtead slid despite saying it expects full-year results to rise in line with previous guidance, after a record performance over the first nine months of the year, with rental revenues up 5% and adjusted EBITDA up 3%.
Oil giants BP and Shell gushed lower as oil prices plunged.
Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "Brent crude is now priced at under $71 per barrel as both supply and demand dynamics exert downward pressure on the value of oil. 10% of extra duties on Chinese goods have also come into effect and the potential fall-out of an all-out trade war on energy demand is at the front of traders’ minds.
"Meanwhile, OPEC+ has unexpectedly announced that it will re-open the taps on 2.2 million barrels of daily oil production from 1 April."
On the upside, Intertek surged to the top of the index as it hiked its full-year dividend and launched a £350m share buyback programme to reward shareholders after a strong 2024 performance, with results helped by recent acquisitions.
The laboratory testing and certification business also raised its medium-term margin target after achieving its current target faster than expected.
Fresnillo shone as the precious metals miner posted a big jump in full-year sales and operating profits. Revenues rose by 26.9% to $3.64bn and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation by more than double to $1.55bn.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Intertek Group (ITRK) 5,525.00p 7.18%
Fresnillo (FRES) 783.50p 3.91%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 375.00p 2.82%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,501.00p 2.71%
Tesco (TSCO) 386.70p 2.30%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 3,426.00p 2.27%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,635.00p 2.12%
GSK (GSK) 1,508.50p 1.96%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,152.00p 1.55%
National Grid (NG.) 972.00p 1.55%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Ashtead Group (AHT) 4,501.00p -6.21%
Smurfit Westrock (DI) (SWR) 3,846.00p -6.10%
BP (BP.) 408.85p -5.52%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 327.10p -5.24%
CRH (CDI) (CRH) 7,654.00p -4.80%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 990.00p -4.26%
Barclays (BARC) 297.95p -4.23%
Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (PSH) 4,032.00p -4.18%
IMI (IMI) 1,993.00p -3.91%
Shell (SHEL) 2,557.50p -3.73%